EnroTown Arc: The Storyteller
by HushedSilence
Summary: Luffy comes to the conclusion that the crew needs a new member. He quickly finds someone that fits the role in Enro Town, but there's a bit of a problem: She keeps saying no. One thing we've all learned, though, is that the captain gets what he wants.
1. Chapter 1

_**AN: Hi guys! ****Oh, I promised myself I w****ould stick to one story at a time, but I wound up breaking it! :( This will not happen again for a while, though. ****For those of you following my OHSHC story, "Late Night Rendezvous," I must apologize! I know I haven't uploaded in forever, but I just am entering a bit of a slump with that story. My obsession with Ouran has kind of been replaced with my obsession for One Piece at the moment, so I just have to say that I'm sorry! (I'm not saying Ouran sucks or anything, but I'm just having a harder time writing for that fandom right now.) Don't be worried though! I'll upload another chapter sometime before the end of my spring break, promise! :D**_

_**On to my new story! :D I have fallen in love with One Piece, which is surprising since I thought it was a joke as a kid. Before you say anything, blame 4Kids! :P There won't be any solid pairings in this story, it will be written because I want to get used to writing in this world and focus on the story instead of the pairings. Interpret the hidden pairings in this story as you will, though! XD it's not that hard.**_

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><p><em>I do not own One Piece. There would have been romance by now and I would have been rolling in money instead of typing a story on FF.<em>

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><p><em>"My life has a superb cast but I can't figure out the plot." ~unknown<em>

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><p><strong>Chapter 1:<strong>

The Going Merry sailed along the sea in the starry night. All that could be heard was the crashing of waves in addition to the chatter of the Straw Hat Pirates on deck. The crew had been reunited with their navigator, Nami, and so far, all had been well.

Monkey D. Luffy, the captain of the ship, leaned on the side of the main deck. The way the stars brought life to the infinite night sky mesmerized him. Strong winds forced Luffy to keep his infamous straw hat on his head in place with his hand. With an unreadable expression on his face, he turned his attention to the beautiful, unforgiving sea. Just how many secrets did these waters hold?

He returned his attention to his crew with a serious face. "Zoro," he said in a grim tone. The first mate glanced in the captain's direction. Zoro immediately stopped his conversation with Usopp. Whenever Luffy had that look on his face, it usually meant that there was something important that needed to be said. With a confused expression on his face, Usopp watched the green-haired man put his beer down on the floor where he sat. He placed his full attention on Luffy.

The rest of the crew followed Zoro's example, wondering what was going on in Luffy's head.

"I'm bored." The answer was clear: absolutely nothing. This false alarm made everyone have an anime-style sweat drop. Why had they let this guy be their captain?

"That's not my problem," the tough swordsman replied with a scowl. He picked up his beer and took a huge gulp of the refreshing beverage. "Go look for something to do."

"I don't feel like it. Ah! We should sing like pirates!" Luffy gave a contagious, wide grin.

"We _are_ pirates, Luffy." Nami closed her eyes. Frustrated, she whacked Luffy's head and continued, "And we don't even have a musician for that." Luffy frowned at this.

"Hm. Oh, then tell me a story, Zoro!"

Sanji slowly shook his head, smirking. He lit his signature cigarette, exclaiming, "You really expect this nitwit to be able to conjure up a decent story for you?"

Veins pulsing in Zoro's forehead showed his anger. "Oh, yeah, asshole? You think you can come up with something better?"

"Naturally," said the calm, confident Sanji after flipping the blonde hair that covered his left eye.

"Bring it, ero-cook!" Zoro exclaimed with a hand instinctively on his Katana. At times it took all of the self-control Zoro had to not slice that cook to pieces.

The two of them took turns telling stories to the crew. Zoro went first and told a story about a swordsman beating up a cocky cook. Needless to say, it was very uncreative, save for the gory details. Throughout the entire ordeal Nami and Usopp cowered in fear. Sanji's visible eye twitched. _Stick to swordfighting, Moss-head, _Sanji thought, mocking his rival's green hair. He was certain that he would wipe the floor with his story. Sanji's story was a very… explicit tale of a beautiful red-haired girl (_Nami,_ hint hint) falling in love with a blonde prince charming (Sanji, hint hint). Nami smacked him on the head on multiple occasions while Usopp almost fell asleep. Zoro glared at the cook with scorn and growled. Such reactions from Nami were expected, but it was odd how Sanji's story angered Zoro so much.

Afterwards, Luffy came to a conclusion. He glanced at Sanji and then at Zoro, who were so confident that the other person had lost. "You guys both suck at making stories." _Ah, Luffy_, Nami thought. She shook her head at the three of them, _You're too blunt for your own good. _Both of their mouths dropped. Then, boiling with anger, they insisted "a redo."

"I guess that settles it, then," Usopp yawned, scratching his head. He got up and decided to walk to the bathroom. Halfway there, he laughed and hollered, "_My_ story would have been much better! The great Captain Usopp never fails to disappoint!"

Usopp had been lying most of his life, anyway. Whether they were lies to the townsfolk or made-up stories to please Kaya, the marksmen had told enough lies to make your head spin. Fabricating stories came as naturally to him as breathing. Of course, these stories would have mostly consisted of Usopp's "adventures" and "great feats." Back when he was with Kaya, Usopp told her stories about the supposed "adventures and battles" he faced when exploring the four Blues.

Luffy turned to Usopp and smiled one of his big, bright smiles. "I guess that means you're the storyteller of the ship, Usopp!"

Usopp suddenly halted. Silence ensued as he turned around slowly. "Uh… What?"

Zoro and Sanji glared at the coward, silently intimidating him. It was as if the glares were meant to pass along the message, "Go ahead, Usopp! See what happens…"

Unable to keep his cool, Usopp's legs started shaking. He put up his hands in front of him to deny the offer from the captain. "Well, uh, sorry, Luffy, but I'm going to have to say no. See, uh, my time on the ship should be spent working on improving my weapons! Ah, yes! That's what a marksman does, after all!" Usopp suddenly gained confidence, as if he himself believed what he said, too.

"Now if you'll excuse me, I must be on my way!" The proud Usopp left the four remaining crew members alone.

Luffy stole a glimpse of Nami, which did not go unnoticed. "Don't even think about it, you idiot." Nami protested, "Navigating is a full-time job. I don't have the time to go around telling stories whenever you please."

"Hm," Luffy replied as he began pacing on the deck of the ship. He walked around in a circle and then eyed the sea again out of habit. "You know what this means, right?"

A gust of wind came blowing from where the transfixed Luffy's attention was. Luffy's short, black hair ruffled in the wind while he held onto his hat again. In addition to this, he added a long, unnecessary pause. In fact, is sounded as if it were added solely for dramatic effect (which is wasn't...maybe).

Luffy smirked. "Our crew needs a Storyteller."

And so, their trip to the Grand Line was put on hold. It was just for a storyteller, too! Anyone but a member of Luffy's crew would find it ridiculous. They had learned to adapt to Luffy's weird choices, so it would be kind of odd for them if he didn't do such a ridiculous thing, anyway.

The next morning, everyone but Zoro was in the galley. He was nowhere to be seen, but people just assumed he was sleeping or training (maybe both…). Sanji, the cook, was preparing breakfast for everyone. He wore his trademark black suit like usual that day. What was Sanji making today? Luffy licked his lips then pondered this as he picked a piece of lint off of his red vest. _There better be some meat!_ Luffy sat next to Nami. Her big, brown eyes were hidden behind a newspaper.

"So, Nami, where are we going now?" Usopp asked. His curly, out of control black hair was partially covered by his favorite dark yellow plaid bandanna. He began toying with the expensive pair of sniper goggles perched on top of his head. How he managed to get these goggles still fascinated him.

Nami looked up and tucked her short orange hair behind her ear. She had a light blue t-shirt on with a nice pair of short-shorts. "Enro town. It's the closest place near us. Hey, Sanji-kun, I'm actually quite hungry, can you—"

In what seemed like a split second, Sanji grabbed everyone's breakfast and brought it to the table, balancing them on three of his limbs like a pro.

"Meat!" Luffy said. Sanji knew him too well. Luffy grabbed a handful of bacon and jammed them all in his mouth. While proceeding to fill his plate, Nami cleared her throat.

"We should get there soon. Everyone be on guard and try not to cause a scene."

"What a clever idea, as always, Nami-san!" Sanji commented as he sat does at the table next to Usopp.

After breakfast, Nami went outside and announced they could see the next town. After Luffy cheered, most of the other members prepared to arrive on land. The Straw Hat Pirates docked their ship at one of the many ports. Numerous ships had been docked there, along with theirs.

The excited Luffy jumped off the ship without waiting for the others and landed without a scratch on him.

"Don't do that! You're gonna cause a scene, Luffy!" Nami screamed after her captain.

"You should know him, by now." The surprised navigator turned around to see Roronoa Zoro randomly pop up from the other side of the ship. By now the crew knew not to question where Zoro was when he's gone.

"Yes, I know. It's kind of unavoidable, isn't it? Wait there, Luffy! Somebody's going to come down with you!"

"I'll pass." The captain replied as he gave one of his big, goofy smiles. "I'm going to go exploring!" He ran off in a random direction, leaving the crew to fend for themselves.


	2. Chapter 2

**This chapter is dedicated to all of those people who have writer's block! It took a while to finish this chapter, but I like it. Now I just need to wait until Mintey flames it! :D **

**For those of you who are utterly clueless, *coughMinteycough* Nakama means "friend." It is something commonly used in One Piece.**

**Please note that Nana (and Daichi) are both my creations and non-existent in the real One Piece manga/anime. In addition to this, Enro Town does_ not_ exist in this universe. **

**Side note: Enro in Japanese means "journey" or "detour."**

**Please review! I like hearing how good I am! :) *insert laugh here* Oh, I am so not funny... **

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><p><em>I do not own One Piece. There would have been romance by now and I would have been rolling in money instead of typing a story on FF.<em>

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><p><em>It took me fifteen years to discover that I had no talent for writing, but I couldn't give it up because by that time I was too famous."<em> ~Robert Benchley

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><p><strong>Chapter 2:<strong>

"I'm leaving, Daichi!" Nana hollered while running out the door of her house that Saturday morning with her green backpack. "See you later!" With just enough room for its two occupants, it was a cute little place with light blue sidings and a porch surrounded by a white picket fence. She slammed the door behind her, shaking the entire house as she left.

The ecstatic Nana ran down the stairs. She then turned left to get to her destination. Most of her long, black hair easily stayed out of her way since it was tied back in a pony tail. She didn't bother dressing in a way to make herself presentable that day, opting instead for a white t-shirt and jean shorts with a pair of cheap sandals.

There wasn't anything special about Enro Town, really. The lack of exciting events in this town (combined with the absence of any tourist attractions or monuments) led to few visitors from other, grander, places. No unique fish species came to the nearby sea shore and there was not one person worth mentioning who grew up there either. Well, unless you counted a skilled fisherman or two, but even then it was nothing special.

"Hello, Nana!" an elderly woman said as the girl ran through town. A few others noticed her presence so they did the same. Nana smiled and waved in response but kept going.

News there spread like wild fire. If anything out of the ordinary, big or small, occurred, the whole town knew in less than a couple hours. With so little to gossip about besides each other, though, it was only expected. Nana thought back to the time when pirates came and invaded their town. Thank God the pirate crew was a joke with few members! News of their arrival had reached the townspeople just in time so they were prepared to fight them off.

She slowed down as she made her way to a large oak tree on a hill right outside of town by the ocean. It was sort of isolated and no one had ever come to this place besides Nana. It was her favorite spot to be alone. She could do whatever she wanted without the fear of prying eyes-writing, in particular.

One would think that she would sit on the left side of the tree to get a good view of the ocean. She sat on the right instead, though, favoring the sight of trees and the road leading to town. Nana opened her backpack and took out the following: a pen, a few scraps of paper, and an old red notebook. Color was starting to fade on the notebook, whose pages were coming out of the binding.

Nana usually wrote whatever came to mind. It seemed like hundreds of plot bunnies were buzzing inside her head. Most of these were written on scraps of paper bunched together in a pile on her desk. She ultimately got a notebook and wrote her thoughts there, though the majority were left unfinished.

It's not that she was upset with this. After all, many famous writers and painters left their greatest masterpieces unfinished, right? Her "story ADD," a phrase Nana patented herself, just..._ happens_. She loses interest in one story and all of a sudden "_needs_ to start" a short story about something spectacular that just came to mind.

None of this was crossing her mind, however, when she was sitting there with that pen in her hand. Currently writing an adventure novel, she was immersed in writing about a few adventurers traveling distant lands. Who knows how much time had passed? Then, all of a sudden, she got a serious case of writer's block.

How was _she_, of all people, going to write an _adventure_ story? _I've only left __this island once, and there's_ no way in hell_ I'm doing that again!_

Adventuring was something Nana always wanted to do. She had hoped writing about one would fill the missing void, but it didn't even come close! How was she supposed to write about something she'd never experienced before? She could herself jealous of the main characters she created herself. In a fit of frustration, she ripped the page out of her book and crumpled it into a paper ball. She threw it as far as she could, not caring that she just littered.

Today was not very successful. Perhaps it would have been a better idea to start fresh the next day? She started packing up her belongings and stood up.

Out of nowhere, a boy with a straw hat showed up, surprising Nana. He was running so fast Nana almost didn't see him! Why was he running so fast? And, more importantly, why was he coming from the direction of the _sea?_

He suddenly stopped and walked over to the crumpled piece of paper. Now that he slowed down, she was able to see him in more detail. The boy, who must have been around her age, wore a pair of trousers and red vest in addition to a pair of sandals. His straw hat, which she noticed before, hid most of his black hair.

With a town like her's, it's very rare for Nana not to know someone right off the bat. Was this guy a foreigner? _Why the hell would he come _here? Nana thought. _To _nobody_-ville! _Admittedly, this guy did look a bit familiar, but she just couldn't put her finger on it. Nana wondered if she should be scared. After a second, she shook her head to clear her thoughts. He was a skinny guy, not someone she should be afraid of! _Right?_

With his smile suddenly gone, he looked down and picked up the paper ball she had thrown only moments before he showed up. _I probably should have picked that up. Ah, whatever. _Nana managed to leave without getting noticed. Poor oblivious Luffy...

Little did Nana know that Luffy was reading the story she threw out, entitled _**Adventures of the Wandering Pirates****. **_Luffy was quickly sucked into the story, but proceeded to frown when he saw it was left unfinished. His eyes lit up in realization. This author could be part of his crew! _A brand new Nakama!_ Underneath the title was the author's name, Nanami Kanada.

**~Pirates~Pirates~Pirates~Pirates~Pirates~Pirates~Pirates~**Pirates~Pirates~Pirates~Pirates~** **Pirates~Pirates~Pirates~Pirates~** **Pirates~Pirates~Pirates~Pirates~** **

Nana slowly walked through town, shoulders slumped. She was upset with the lack of progress that day. Sure, she took one step forward with her writing, but she moved two steps back afterwards!

Maybe something in town will cheer me up, Nana thought. After buying an apple at the nearby fruit stand from an old lady, she searched town for something of interest. She spotted a local bulletin board on her left and walked over, hoping for something at least a little exciting.

_Let's see, here… Wanted posters, news, ads… Oh, there's an event in the book store next week! _Nana read. The woman started jumping up and down in excitement, which earned a few glares, but she managed to pull it all together and gain composure.

"Outta the way, little girl!" A scruffy old man with papers in his hand shouted. His evident scowl made it obvious he was ticked off. What a grumpy old man. He wore a uniform, a clear indication that he had some sort of authority. Noticing this, Nana stepped back to get out of the man's way. He grunted then proceeded to nail some papers onto the board. Curious, Nana peeked over his shoulder. She slowly began to notice they were wanted posters. She shivered, looking at the devious and menacing faces. Wait a minute…

Nana stopped scanning the wanted posters and stared at one in particular. It was an old one, the corners were folded and the ends were ripped off. This was probably because of the time it spent hung up. How had she not noticed it before? The familiar face, that cheeky grin, that straw hat...

He was Monkey D. Luffy! A _Pirate!_


	3. Chapter 3

**_Wow, I'm on a roll this week! Thank Spring Break! I think this chapter might be a bit confusing, so please let me know if you have a hard time keeping track. Any questions? just leave a review or PM me! :)_**

**_Oh, for those of you who don't know, they have not gone into the Grand Line yet. In fact, they are still in the East Blue! _**

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><p><em>I do not own One Piece. There would have been romance by now and I would have been rolling in money instead of typing a story on FF.<br>_

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><p><em>"The purpose of life is a life of purpose"~unknown<em>

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><p><strong>Chapter 3:<strong>

"I found our new Nakama!" Luffy screamed as he entered the Going Merry. Surprised, the crew all gathered around the captain.

_So quickly? _Nami wondered. Skeptical, she asked Luffy, "Where is he?"

Luffy thought for a second. While looking up, he leaned his chin on his hand. With a straight face, he said, "He? I think it's a she."

"You _think?" _She whacked him in the head._ _Honestly, he's such an idiot sometimes.__ "Well? Show her to us!" Nami exclaimed.

"Her?" This captured Sanji's attention. "Is she anywhere near as stunning as my Nami-san? Oh, it does not matter! As long as she's a beautiful female it doesn't mat—" Nami hit him even harder than Luffy.

"Alright, guys! Just shut up. Where is this fricken mystery girl, anyway?" Zoro asked, impatient. This was taking away from his training time! He debated leaving the conversation and returning to his workout. "If she doesn't show soon, I'm going to go train."

Luffy opened up a crumpled piece of paper from his back pocket. He held it so his hands were on the top and bottom of the page. This easily let other crew mates see the story on the sheet of paper. "Here she is!" Not ready for this curveball, the crew almost instantly face-palmed.

**~Pirates~Pirates~Pirates~Pirates~Pirates~Pirates~Pirates~Pirates~Pirates~Pirates~Pirates~ Pirates~Pirates~Pirates~Pirates~ Pirates~Pirates~Pirates~Pirates~**

Upon Luffy's request, the entire crew was released into Enro-Town in search of this unknown girl. They spread out and searched high and low, in big places and small spaces. The only problem was that they had no idea who they were looking for…

Nami made "a sacrifice" and checked all of the stores for this girl. So far, the navigator hadn't seen anybody that looked like a "Nanami Kanada." She searched the bargain rack, the back of the store, _hell,_ she even searched the dressing rooms! No matter how much she looked, though, she never got bored with shopping._ _Uh, wait, Nami thought, _what are we looking for again?___

"Excuse me?" A black-haired girl behind her monotonously said. "I need to get to the changing room." Nami moved out of the way, but accidentally bumped into the girl's green backpack. Nami muttered an apology and proceeded to the exit with nothing in her hands. Though the crew's new storyteller wasn't in that store, Nami had a gut feeling she was in the shoe store!

Shopping was not helping Nana get rid of her bad mood. She found a cute red shirt in a store which looked amazing when she tried it on, but it only made her smile the tiniest bit. _Ah, well, shopping was never my thing, anyway… _

She bought the shirt and walked out of the store. There was a young man outside attempting to court a brown-haired woman with a pink belly shirt and shorts that were two sizes too small. Blonde hair covered half of the man's face, who had a cigarette in his mouth. Nana rolled her eyes as she saw the man's eyes turn into hearts. Was he… serenading her? One screech and slap in the face later, the unfortunate, lust-filled man ran toward some blonde girl down the street. Nana continued walking and tried to go unnoticed.

A thought struck her as she saw the book store on her right. Finding a good book would surely cheer her up! Nana raced toward the _New Releases _with all of the energy she had, but she must have been too eager since she ran into a poor boy in brown overalls!

Usopp was the only smart one of the group. He actually thought about going to a book store! With this goal clear in his mind, Usopp looked for anything that looked remotely feminine. Unfortunately, all of the staff there that day were males and the women he talked to weren't interested in talking to him. After a half hour of trying, though, he gave up and looked around for something interesting to pass the time with. Just five minutes later, though, the girls started going to _him… literally! _A cute girl with her hair tied back and ran into him out of nowhere!

"Ah! Sorry!" The girl apologized. "I was aiming for the _New Releases _section. I guess I overshot it, huh?" She laughed at her stupidity then picked up the bags she dropped.

"It's fine," Usopp assured, brushing off his overalls. "You didn't mean it." It didn't take long for him to realize that she was staring at him. "Is something wrong?"

"Why do you have those goggles on your head?" The girl was slightly embarrassed to ask this to a stranger. "Sorry, I'm just naturally curious."

Smirking, Usopp looked her straight in the eye while proudly proclaiming, "These are my sniper goggles! You never know when you'll have to use these!" Truthfully, though, Usopp just thought they looked cool. It seemed that she agreed with this since her eyes widened in fascination.

"Wow!" the woman exclaimed.

"Yep!" Usopp said while touching his goggles, the subject of the conversation. "You know, I once used this baby along with my slingshot to hit a fish bigger than you in the North Blue from 10 miles away!"

She was amazed. "That's crazy! You must be so skilled. Plus, you get to go to faraway places! You've gone to th_e _North Blue?"__

They talked for about 10 minutes before Usopp and the girl had to go their separate ways. Usopp failed to find Luffy's future storyteller, so he decided to go to the weaponry shop he saw on the way there.

Nana's stomach was growling, so she bid farewell to a nice guy she met at the bookstore and went back into the streets to find a restaurant to eat lunch.


	4. Chapter 4

**Apologies for the extremely delayed update. I know I have to work on my two stories more and hope to update then more often as time goes by. I definitely plan to have at least one of my stories finished by the beginning of summer! **

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><p><em>I do not own One Piece. There would have been romance by now and I would have been rolling in money instead of typing a story on FF.<em>

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><p><em>"You cannot find peace by avoiding life." ~Virginia Woolf<em>

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><p><strong>Chapter 4:<strong>

Nana's stomach growled as she strolled through Enro-town in search of a restaurant. Her day had taken quite a few twists and turns so she was ready to just sit down and enjoy a nice warm meal. She paused as she found a restaurant on her left. Ecstatic, she walked inside the place with a little bounce in her step.

It was a small little place with pale blue walls and hardwood flooring. Flourescent lighting lit the area above the tables while nearby windows illuminated the entire room. The booths were all filled up and there was only a few tables left empty.

Nana was about to talk to the hosts at the front counter but found that their attention lied elsewhere. In all actuality, however, it was not just them. The majority of the customers were murmuring to each other with surprised looks on their faces. Some slyly glanced out of the corner of their eye while holding a menu wheras others decided to just outright stare with wide eyes and mouth agape.

The attention of the entire room had been directed at a boy with a stack of empty dishes two feet high on his table. The numerous stares sent his way were promptly ignored (or perhaps unnoticed?) as he stuffed his face with the stack of meat on his current dish. Less than 5 seconds passed when he grabbed a drumstick from the next full plate and bit it with the ferocity of a ravenous animal.

Nana rubbed her eyes and looked back at the scene. Was she dreaming? This was unreal. Then, as she refocused on the disturbing sight, Nana slowly backed away toward the exit. After seeing that boy in the restaurant, she decided to just settle for a drink at the bar. The boy, Nana noticed, was wearing something she had actually seen earlier that day: a straw hat. Sure enough, this was the same boy that almost crossed paths with her, Monkey D. Luffy.

Anyone who knew Luffy could easily tell you that he eats everything in sight. It is not easy to get him to stop once he starts. He becomes so immersed sometimes that it gets hard to even have a conversation with the guy because he's too busy devouring an entire cow! It really was not surprising that he did not notice Nana walk into the room and stealthily walk out. Chances are he would not have even acknowledged her at the moment, anyway.

Perhaps Roronoa Zoro would have better luck? Thanks to his lack of motivation, the swordsman had not bothered to begin searching yet and just wandered throughout the town. It was unlikely that he knew what he was doing. He often walked in huge circles, thanks to his natural ability to get lost, and passed the same places over and over again. He was thankful when he finally noticed a bar and walked inside. Zoro was definitely in the mood for a drink. Or several. Then again, when DIDN'T he want to drink?

He sat on a stool right in front of the bartender. After getting some booze, he sat there for around fifteen minutes and drank silently. Most of the people there walked in either depressed or excited for a drink with some buddies. They walked out stumbling, quickly letting their self-control be drowned in alcohol. After years of experience, Zoro learned bar fights were common, but there were not any particularly determined instigators there, that day. It was a good thing, too, since a girl had just walked in, which did not go unnoticed by a few of the people in there.

Zoro smirked to himself. What was a girl like that doing in a bar? She must have lost her mind. She stuck out like a sore thumb in a room of rough, bulky men. The black-haired girl was petite and, judging from a bag she had, just went shopping. She did look like she needed a drink, but she should not have tried getting one in this bar.

The girl saw an empty seat next to Zoro and sauntered over to sit next to him. Though she should have been a bit hesitant, Zoro had to give her props for being very casual in such a setting. The girl seemed comfortable in a room full of men, almost as if she prefered it.

"Hey, Nana," the old bartender said to the girl as he leaned on the counter. "How's life been treating you?"

"Fine, how about you?"

"Oh, you know, same old, same old. How's that story coming along?"

Nana flinched but recovered quickly. Zoro noticed this but said nothing. Rubbing the back of her head, she bashfully replied, "I kind of ditched it. No inspiration, I guess."

The swordsman raised an eyebrow. She writes stories? Perhaps this was the girl his captain was looking for. "Oy," he spoke up, garnering attention from the two others. "What's your name?"

Nana's eyebrows furrowed as she looked him over. She had never met this guy, either. The girl's eyes wandered to his waste, which had three swords attached at the hip. Her eyes widened at the thought that this guy might be dangerous. Choosing to avoid eye contact, Nana tried playing it cool and said, "Why do you ask?"

Zoro took another sip of his drink. "My boss is looking for somebody who can tell a great story. He's kind of got the attention span of a two year old."

Nana smirked at this and decided to hold out her hand. "Nanami Kanada. Just call me Nana."

Heh. Mission accomplished. And Zoro didn't even try.


	5. Chapter 5

**I'm back, guys! And it's summer time, so you know what that means! My updates are going to spam your emails! :D **

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><p><em>Disclaimer: I do not own One Piece. There would have been romance by now and I would have been rolling in money instead of typing a story on FF.<em>

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><p><em>"Humor brings insight and tolerance. Irony brings a deeper and less friendly understanding." ~Agnes Repplier<em>

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><p><strong>Chapter 5: <strong>

All of the Straw Hat Pirates returned to their ship later that day. Though they all left with one sole objective in mind, Luffy, Sanji, Nami, and Usopp all returned without accomplishing what they set out to do. No one really seemed affected by this, since they had low expectations from the start. The chances of finding a girl based solely on her name was slim to none. Frankly, the majority of them did not really try that hard to begin with.

Something surprised the crew when they returned, though. It was something they had not prepared for. It was that one of them had actually _succeeded_.

"I found her." Zoro said as they made their way to the main deck. Four heads snapped in the swordsman's direction, eyes wide and mouths open.

Nami, confused, thought that they had misheard him. "Can you repeat that for me, Zoro?"

It was so ridiculous that the statement had to be repeated! They kind of had a right to be this way. Who would have thought, that of _all_ people, Roronoa Zoro would be the one to find the new storyteller for the Straw Hat Pirates?

"I found her. Don't make me say it again." Zoro reiterated. Zoro did surprise himself, in a way. But it was all just luck, _Nothing_ more.

Luffy was the first to recover. The captain grinned, laughed, and gave Zoro a thumbs up.

The rest of the crew was less convinced. "Just how did you manage to do_ that,_ moss-head?" Sanji asked. Nami and Usopp were eager to hear the answer.

"Shut up, ero-cook! Does it really matter?" the frustrated Zoro replied.

"Tch, don't be so stubborn. That's probably what made you lose her in the first place. That's why she's _not here_, right?"

"Don't make me laugh. That girl is just plain weird."

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><p><em>Flashback:<em>

_The two of them had left the bar long ago. They were on their way back to (what Zoro thought was) the way to the ship. Much to Zoro's dismay, they had arrived at the same place they started after an hour: that God damn bar._

_Nana face-palmed. Boy, was _she_ pissed off. "Do you have any idea where you're_ going?_" Nana yelled. "That's the third time we made our way back here. We're just going around in circles! Is this some kind of joke?"_

_Zoro frowned, staring at the bar. He debated going back inside for another drink. Absentmindedly, he said, "I'll find the ship eventually."_

_Nana's eyes widened. "Wait... ship?"_

_The swordsman looked over at the girl. What was she freaking out about? "Yeah. We're pirates. You couldn't tell?"_

_Nana looked at him again then stared at the floor. Perhaps she was second guessing her choice? Zoro was surprised that the way he looked did not give everything away. _

_"So your 'boss' is your captain?" Nana asked, still gazing at the floor. Her voice was timid and frightened. Zoro nodded and gave a grunt in response. Who would have known a little word like "ship" would set her off?_

_"and... you travel on a... ship." It was more a statement than a question. Zoro confirmed her suspicions. Pirates did, after all, go hand-in-hand with ships._

_A long silence followed before Nana spoke again. _

_"I'm sorry. I... I can't d-do this..." Nana stuttered. Zoro raised an eyebrow. She was shaking. The girl sniffled and slowly backed away. Was she crying?_

_"Hey. What are you-" _

_"I've gotta go!" Nana interrupted than sprinted away from him, leaving Zoro confused and lost. _

_End Flashback_

* * *

><p>"She's scared of pirates?" Nami concluded.<p>

"That's what it sounded like, anyway." Zoro said while yawning. It was getting late.

Usopp put his hand on his chin, deep in thought. "Crying is a little extreme, don't you think?" Usopp had a point, but it was kind of ignored. If anything, it was a little comical that_ Usopp_ made this statement.

"So we did all this for nothing, huh?" Sanji said, even though he just spent the day stalking girls.

"I guess so..." Nami answered. Shopping all day was not much better.

"No," the determined Luffy said. "She's going to be my nakama! We can't just let her go!"

"How can someone afraid of pirates be part of a pirate crew, Luffy? It doesn't make any sense." Sanji asked.

"I don't know. They just will." Sanji shook his head at his often incompetent captain. Nami punched Luffy in the back of the head.

"Alright, if Luffy really wants it, I guess we have to." Zoro said. "I'll go find her again and talk with her."

"Yeah, right, Zoro!" Nami rejected. "You have a hard enough time finding your way to the ship on your own! I guess I'll go with you."

"Me, too! Me, too!" Luffy raised his hand for no reason. "I wanna meet my Nakama!" Luffy ecstatically shouted.

"Alright, alright." Nami acquiesced. "The three of us will go look for her tomorrow."


	6. Chapter 6

**I'm not going to bother to explain how they found Nana. I'm just a bit too lazy, and I want to move the plot along. Hooray for plot holes!  
><strong>**... Lots of drama, this chapter, huh? I wonder why. ;)  
><strong>**Oh, by the way, the things that Daichi is saying this chapter is true. People look to their left when they are lying and a someone with a real smile has certain creases around the eyes and stuff. I looked this up. Trust a teenage girl with a weird psychology/body language obsession.**

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><p><em>Disclaimer: I do not own One Piece. There would have been romance by now and I would have been rolling in money instead of typing a story on FF.<em>

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><p><em>"Strangers are just friends waiting to happen. ~ Rod McKuen, <em>Looking for a Friend<em> _

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><p><strong>Chapter 6:<strong>

When Nana answered the door the next day, the last thing she expected to see was a bunch of pirates. The man she met yesterday at the bar had brought two others with him; one of them was Monkey D. Luffy, much to Nana's dismay, while the other was a orange-haired girl that did not really look like a pirate at all. Upon closer inspection, Nana realized that she had crossed paths with her in one of the stores she visited. Looks certainly were deceiving, she supposed.

She debated asking how they found her, but she was afraid to ask. Instead, Nana slammed the door in their faces. She leaned against the door and slowly sank to the floor.

This was just _great_. She had gotten herself into such a big mess. They looked like a consistent bunch. _Surely_ there was a way to avoid joining them, right? There must be.

One of them began knocking on the door again, making the girl jump. She frantically got up and locked the door in an attempt to stay away from the pirate crew. Nana ignored the doubtful voice in the back of her head saying it would do no good.

"Nana? Who was it?" a man asked as he walked over to the front door where she stood.

Nana faked a smile when she saw the familiar face. "Oh, no one, Daichi! Just a salesman." She replied, looking to her left. He frowned in response.

Daichi was a well-built guy with hair long enough to cover his forehead and ears but short enough to not touch his shoulders. His hair was a dark red, which was odd because neither of their parents had that trait. This made it a bit surprising that Daichi and Nana were siblings.

He was the elder sibling by almost five years, making him 23 since Nana was 18. The two of them were fairly close. In a situation like theirs, though, it was sort of expected.

They had the same teal eyes and passion for books. In fact, Daichi had walked in with his right index finger keeping his place in a thick book he was reading. While she liked fictional stories, her brother preferred learning various facts in non-fiction books.

He sighed. "You _do_ know I can tell when you're lying, right? You looked to your left when you were talking to me. Plus, that smile is so fake. Your eyes give it away."

Nana frowned. She instantly regretted letting him read those books about psychology and body language. "Damnit, Daichi, I don't know what possessed you to learn about that kind of stuff. You know the stupidest things, I swear."

He smirked. "I was right though, that's all that matters. Now, tell me what's up." He looked through the little hole in the door to see a couple of visitors still patiently waiting for the door to open.

"Well, you see-"

"Luffy, no!" A voice cried from outside.

"_Gomu Gomu no... Bazooka!_"

_Boom!_ Something suddenly crashed into the front of the house and broke down the wall next to the door. Daichi and Nana fell backwards and began coughing since a lot of dirt had flown into the air.

When Nana finally opened her eyes, she saw the infamous pirate captain through the gigantic new hole in her wall heavily breathing. Then, he suddenly looked in her direction. "Hi!" He smiled and waved. She frowned and sweat-dropped.

The girl of the group appeared into view. She wasted no time and quickly began punching Luffy over and over. Nana and Daichi winced.

"Why. Don't. You. Listen. To. What. I. Say!" She angrily screeched. Zoro showed up and pulled Nami off of Luffy, which really only led to more bickering between those two instead.

What a great first impression.

* * *

><p>"No." Nana said with a bit of edge in her voice. "No way."<p>

The five of them were seated in the Kanada household's living room. An entire wall was filled with books messily piled onto shelves. A large amount of crumpled up scraps of paper were carelessly left on the ground, and several pictures were hung on the walls. The majority of them were old family photos from years before, but there were also a few more recent ones of the two siblings together.

Luffy frowned at her response. "Why not?" The Captain was sharing a couch with his First Mate and Navigator. Nami looked around the room in an effort to ease her boredom while Zoro seemed to be dozing off.

"Traveling around with a bunch of stupid pirates is the last thing on my to-do list." she snarled. Normally she would be a lot more cautious when handling people like pirates, but that hole in the wall had struck a nerve."I'd appreciate it if you'd pay for the damage you've caused and leave."

"Hey!" Nami cut in. "If you didn't slam the door in our faces he wouldn't have done that! It's not his fault! And I'm not paying for those damages."

Nana glared at the orange-haired woman. "Yes, you will."

"Tch," Nami laughed, though she knew very well it was not a joke. "Over my dead body."

"Uh, ladies, that's not the problem right now," Daichi intervened in a soothing voice. "Why don't we stick to the task at hand? We can save this for another day."

Nana sighed and broke eye contact, choosing to listen to her brother's reasoning. "Just try to look for another... 'Storyteller,' or whatever."

"What? _Noooo! _You're our Nakama!" Luffy said.

"You don't even know me, Luffy!" She almost hissed. "How can we possibly be Nakama? We aren't and never will be."

"Well, I can get to know you better when we're on the ship-"

"No!" Nana screamed. She slammed her hand on the coffee table and stood up defiantly. "There is no way in hell that I'm going on that... ship of yours! There's nothing you can do to change that, Luffy!" The girl was now trembling. Daichi got up and put a hand on her shoulder for support.

"But, you know..." Luffy began. He was still not able to take a hint.

"Get out of my house." She said.

"What?" Nami asked, eyebrows furrowed.

"Get out of _my house!_" She screeched. "Get back on your ship, away from me, and sail far, far away! Do you hear me? _Go!_"

Once they woke Zoro up, the three defeated pirates left the house and went back to the ship. The outrageous behavior from their new Nakama was certainly unexpected.

"You sure know how to pick 'em, Luffy." Zoro grunted.


End file.
